A superstar suffering from anorexia, drug addiction and body dysmorphia disorder, and the American medical system, in every way possible, failed Michael Jackson and the American public. And if the man who was, perhaps, the most famous person in the world can be failed by our out-of-control medical system, what chance do the rest of us have?
Michael Jackson weighed a reported 112 pounds at the time of his death. According to the Santa Barbara (California) Sheriff’s Department arrest report in 2005, Jackson’s height was 5 feet and 11 inches. That would make his body mass index a skeletal 15.6 at the time of his death. How low is that? The World Health Organization says that a BMI of 16.0 is the weight one might die of starvation. Amazingly, Jackson was reputed to have been gaining weight for his upcoming concert tour.
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And it is not like Michael Jackson was a poor hermit who did not have access to medical care. Jackson, in addition to being one of the most well-known people on the planet, was also incredibly rich and successful. Does being rich and famous all of a sudden make access to prescription medications no longer an issue? Did any of the amazing cabal of doctors that Jackson had at his beck and call ever even pause to think of their self-aggrandizing Hippocratic Oath? The oath says, “I will neither give a deadly drug to anybody if asked for it, nor will I make a suggestion to this effect.”
Time and again, these pillars of American society reacted to a starving patient with prescription drugs. And what drugs did they give? According to reports, Michael Jackson was taking an incredible mix of medications. Those drugs include Demerol (pain killer), Dilauded (pain killer), Vicodin (pain killer), Soma (muscle relaxant), Xanax (anti-anxiety sedative), Zoloft (anti-depressant and anti-anxiety), Paxil (anti-depressant and anti-anxiety), and antibiotics.
Some might argue that “give a deadly drug” means they will not help someone commit suicide. But what else can you call giving drugs to an anorexic man with various other medical ailments, such as skin cancer, vitiligo, lupus, Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency,and obvious mental health issues such as body dysmorphic disorder?
The Mayo Clinic’s body dysmorphic disorder page says it is a chronic mental illness characterized by appearance and body image. Those suffering from this disorder “may seek out numerous cosmetic procedures” to fix their “perceived flaws.” Another symptom is that they are never satisfied after the procedure and are soon in search of another. Michael Jackson could have been the poster boy for this condition.
Dr. Deepak Chopra, famous for his books and non-stop television appearances, is frequently referred to as “Jackson’s spiritual advisor.” An article in LawFirms.com quotes Chopra as saying “he had been concerned that Jackson was abusing painkillers” and that "the problem has been going on for a long time, but we didn't know what to do.”
Chopra has been all over the news telling the world that Jackson asked him for pain killers, but that he refused. He also claims that interventions were tried but failed. This was true even after Jackson “himself called his drug use an addiction” during his 1993 trial for child molestation. How did the interventions fail? A group of doctors have amazing powers to hospitalize mentally ill patients for their own good. Jackson should have been carefully detoxed (and fed) to strengthen his body and clear his mind. Therapy should have been a daily thing to help him get over his disorders.
The last 20 years of Michael Jackson’s life were characterized by prescription drug addiction and severe mental disorders. At the time of his death, his personal cardiologist Dr. Conrad Murray, lived at Jackson’s mansion. Maybe a personal psychotherapist on hand would have helped Jackson realize that many of his health problems were in his mind and not his body.
Pain killer addiction is characterized by continuous use of the pain killer not to ease the physical pain of an injury, but to avoid the mental (and short term physical) pain of withdrawal. His army of doctors should have attacked his addiction to their pain killers with the same zeal as they prescribed them in the first place. But they didn’t. They should have made sure Jackson was getting enough nutrients so that his body was strong enough to deal with his medical conditions. But they didn’t.
An article in MedicineNet.com about medication and addiction raves about the wonders of these drugs like Vicodin. They defend the wide use of pain killers even though “emergency room visits resulting from the abuse of painkillers alone has gone up 163% since 1995” (the article was written in 2005). The most commonly abused prescription drugs are “opioid narcotics used to treat pain, depressants used to treat anxiety, and stimulants used to treat conditions like ADHD and obesity.”
The article goes on to say that “the people who are mixing drugs” are usually “at highest risk of problematic use and side effects.” And when it comes to prescription drug addiction, there is a great deal that is still unknown. Jackson’s mental health condition and his mixing of drugs for pain, anxiety, and muscle relaxants made him a classic “red flag” patient, but that did not keep him from being able to get a wide variety of prescriptions.
As the world prepares to honor Jackson today with a funeral and celebration of his life, we need to remember that more could have been done to watch out for his well-being. It could very well be that Jackson’s life and death may be an apt metaphor for the old adage that “you don’t invite the drug dealers to the intervention” for drug abuse.
The King of Pop did not need more pain killing drugs. He needed someone to talk to about his mental health issues like anorexia and body dysmorpia. And, as a well known vegetarian, he needed to eat much more than he did. The American medical system failed Michael Jackson. We cannot allow them to fail the rest of us.
©Copyright of text, Mark Rubi, July 7, 2009
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Comments
i will miss michael alot,his favoritisiom and songs i love him and its hard to be true
Now all of a sudden people wanna pay attention to michael but b 4 know one really cared it was all about soulja boy and beyonce and all of that but i see it takes someone to die just so people can care.which is very wrong.Know one gave a crap about james brown now all of a sudden when he dies people crying and trying to represent,but what's da point. its just not right.because michael jackson deserve everything. And i just wanna say michael jackson...rest in peace. I will alwayz love u and u will always be remembered in my heart as the first to start pop and all kinds of dances, your a beautiful intelligent guy whom will alwayz be love.thank you.sincerely the perrson wh o really cares....latoya jones..
that is the most bad news ever i know who he is i seen his videos
So Jackson was a victim of the medical system? Rich people can obtain whatever they want from the medical system. He had plenty of people telling him to stop using the drugs, including Deepak Chopra, but he didn't listen. If he is the victim of anyone, it is his father, who abused him terribly both physically and mentally when he was a child and told him how ugly he was.
Please. The medical system did not fail Michael Jackson. He failed to take responsibility of admitting he had a problem and getting help for it; for which the medical system has plenty of resources. Put blame where it belongs; on the addict. No one put a gun to his head to become an addict. He could have chosen other routes to deal with his problem, but he chose to use and abuse drugs.
Certainly there's plenty wrong with the American medical system but to say that it failed Michael Jackson is hyperbole run amok. Ultimately, Michael failed himself.
Why are there so many people who want to blame Michael Jackson for his illnesses? Things like anorexia and body dysmorphia disorder are mental illnesses. Their very nature means that those who suffer from them are incapable of recognizing them. They are not like a broken leg.
Michael surrounded himself with medical "experts" who were too star-crossed to tell him the truth or do what was necessary to help make him healthy.
Michael did not choose to have these disorders, so it was up to the professionals to help him overcome them. Those professionals failed miserably... and it was not Michael's fault.
He was not hitting the street to score some illegal drugs. Michael was visiting professionals who undergo many years of rigorous medical training. They were the ones who wrote the prescriptions that helped kill him. They must be held to a higher standard.
Mark Rubi -- Extreme Weight Loss Examiner
It proves money talks. Those doctors did not care a bit about his health, just how much $$$ they could squeeze out of him. In the end, they squeezed the life out of him, literally. This is going to show what will happen to government controlled medicine. Obama cares nothing about the People, just how much $$$ his cronies can make, at the expense of us all.
MJ was exploited by doctors. somebody needs locking up.
Dear Liz,
I agree that the "system" was squeezing Michael Jackson for everything he was worth.
But I do not agree that Obama and his "cronies" had anything at all to do with it. Jackson's medical disorders long predate the president entering public life.
In fact, online medical record availability to every physician and pharmacist in the country could drastically reduce this kind of problem where numerous doctors prescribe dangerous drugs to the same patient. This is one part of the reform that the president is proposing.
There is a problem, but I believe that the changes President Obama is proposing for the health care system will help all Americans not in the "Health Care Industry" or major stockholders in those companies.
Mark Rubi -- Extreme Weight Loss Examiner
To Liz: "Obama cares nothing about the People, just how much $$$ his cronies can make, at the expense of us all." What an odd thing to say about someone who has devoted his entire life to public service, starting with many years as a community organizer. Are you sure it's not George Bush your talking about? He's the oil man with his hands in the pockets of companies like Enron. Not to mention the resumes of his cronies. You do not have a clue what your talking about.
Mark, I agree with you. He had serious mental illness. People who have not suffered from any kind of mental illness or do not have anyone in their family that does, will not understand. Both my brothers' are mentally ill and need help. I have urged both of them to get help but they do not even recognize they have a problem and will not get it willingly. One is homeless and estranged from the family now. The other lives with my mother. There aren't alot of options for getting him help right now, especially with the budget cuts here in California.
As a person with mental illness in the family, I can attest that persons with mental illness do not recognize they are ill. The brain is not working. Just like kidneys fail, heart fails, sometimes the brain itself does not work. I felt sorry for Michael Jackson because he lived out his mental illness in the public eye. He was made fun of, rather than being treated as a person with a real illness that needed medical treatment. Finally, someone has raised the issue of mental illness. And yes, doctors failed him because they are trained to recognize this disease, and refer persons for the appropriate treatment. I do think, based on experience with family members, it can be difficult to get help for family members. I was able to get help for a family member but only after years of persistence and a doctor who finally fought to have her committed for several months so her medication would take effect. It was only then that nutrition and therapy were helpful.
Good article, you hit the nail on the head. It's all very sad.
Mark, you are absolutely correct in what you have stated in this artical and comments. A few months ago I had some postsurgical blood test taken and it came back to the nurse that my blood count was too low. She said my blood was very thin and I'm never to take asprin or tylenol because they thin the blood even more and could be fatal. It was put into my chart. After my knee surgery my doctor perscribed me perscription strength tylenol to take for pain! He never consulted with the nurses or the charted findings on my blood work. I refused the perscription and ask him to read my blood work findings and he said,"oh, sorry, I'm not trying to kill you!" and changed my perscription. Six years ago my brothers heart stopped and he died because two different doctors were giving him the same medicine with different names, they over dosed him. Sloppy irresponsible doctors are killing people then covering up their tracks. Michael's death unfortunatly is another wake up call to us all!
I miss you Michael. What a sweet angle we had in you. Your love, compassion, caring, and kindness will remain in our,(your fans) hearts forever!! I never can say good-bye.
i should slap those doctors that gave him those pills because i miss him so much
Mark, many thanks for this very good article, you are absolutely right ! It is a pity that nobody was there and/or able to help him and that his doctors didn`t do it either - although it would have been their duty to do it ! It`s a shame and indeed very very sad !
Thanks again for bringing it to the point and sorry about my english.
Best regards from austria
A very good article to take to heart - if only those closest to him could have seen what was happening, Michael would still be with us. He did not want to die and leave behind three children he loved so much. When a hired doctor crosses the ethics line writing phony RX's to pump Michael with the poison that killed him, he stopped being a physician and turned into the ultimate ABUSER, praying on Michael's money and weakness. Perhaps the only power Michael believed he had was his power to alter his appearance, which he sadly revealed in many interviews as being a source of great insecurity during his early life. Thanks mainly to Michael's memories of his father's ridicule during his awkward teenage years. Kids never forget their parents' cruel and heartless remarks - it scars them for life, inside and out. It crushed me to watch Michael at 44 cover his face and cry when asked about being beaten his father. A man who gave us so much joy carried so much sadness inside. CRIMINAL!
I miss Michael Jackson so much because he is so famous and also I liked his songs.So may you die in peace.love you always Micheal
Sad. Nobody loved him enough to help him with his addictions and mental health issues.
Well Michal Jackson i love ya songs and i will miss ya so much homeboy
I live in Taiwan .I miss Michael Jackson so much .
that was my homeboy i sad dat i didnt get to meet him
You can see his spirit leaving his body..Poor Michael..You live forever in our music and our souls<3333
we will asume to miss him!!!!!!.....
it's ok for everyone to make a comment nown that he's gone. what about the news papers that dedicated their life writting bad stories and making millions of him, they should be taking to court and give back every penny to his children because the press was a part of his ill problem. michael worked so hard but got little from the greedy news paper and bad reporters just because of jelouse they haven't got talente apart from writting lies and unfounded stories.
yeah every body is going to miss him alot I am I do know about you guys I hope that the person that killed him gose to jail!!!!
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